


Opening Up

by vivid_vortex



Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU, DCU (Comics)
Genre: Batbrothers (DCU) Bonding, Brotherly Love, Bruce Wayne is Batman, Bruce Wayne is a Good Parent, Canon-Typical Violence, Damian Wayne Feels, Damian Wayne is Robin, Dick Grayson Needs a Hug, Dick Grayson is Nightwing, Family Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Good Parent Alfred Pennyworth, Hurt Bruce Wayne, Hurt/Comfort, Jason Todd Deserves Better, Jason Todd is Red Hood, Light Angst, Tim Drake Needs a Hug, Tim Drake is Red Robin, batfam
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-28
Updated: 2019-09-28
Packaged: 2020-10-29 18:48:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20801240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vivid_vortex/pseuds/vivid_vortex
Summary: Batman doesn't get hurt, but their dad, Bruce Wayne, does, and all four of the bat brothers learn that the hard way.





	Opening Up

**Author's Note:**

  * For [fleetfoot1](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fleetfoot1/gifts).

> This was my first request so I hope ya'll really like it! Enjoy!

Bruce wasn’t supposed to be hurt, he never was.

Even when he was fighting with an open stab wound in his leg, he wasn’t hurt. Injured, yes, but never hurt. Being hurt was being vulnerable. Batman was never vulnerable

Dick definitely wasn’t expecting to be holding his adoptive father in his arms at twelve in the morning, sprinting with the man who had raised him in his arms. His heart was racing almost as fast as his mind and his legs were close to buckling under him from how long he had been running whilst carrying Batman, who was still in his heavy-duty suit.

They were all on a mission, Bruce, him and his brothers. It was supposed to be an easy, in and out job for them. They just needed to shut down a drug cartel. Needless to say, it was anything but easy. They were all separated because they were easily outnumbered. Dick had ended up with Bruce, and he guessed Jason was on his own while Tim and Damian were paired up.

They were doing well until their comm systems were somehow hacked, a sudden ringing in their ears leaving them distracted and allowing a few men to get a good swing or two at the legendary Batman.

By the time Dick pushed two thugs off himself and sprinted over, Batman was bleeding out a concerning amount of blood from his side. His eyes darted over his form, stopping when he saw a knife laying on the ground beside him, covering in the Dark Knight’s blood. With his bugged out comm turned off, he was able to focus enough to make quick work of the goons and as soon as he turned back and ran to Bruce, the smell of fresh blood hit.

_I should be used to this. _He thought. He had seen worse wounds, he had seen dead bodies before, hell, that was part of the job. However, this was different. The metallic and heavy smell was nauseating, but maybe that was from the fact that it was spilling out of the man he calls ‘Dad’. Breathing through his mouth, it took a solid second to adjust before he was able to walk over, crouch down and apply pressure to the gushing wound.

He had to wait for around 5 minutes before Jason, Tim and Damian finally found them.

So now they were running. Dick had pinged the Batmobile to arrive outside the tall abandoned apartment building they were in. The structure was near the outskirts of Gotham, close to the slums, hopefully it wouldn’t take long to get back home.

His brothers were uncharacteristically quiet, Jason especially. He had asked if Dick was hurt, muttered a few obscene curses and called his two other brothers over before going mute completely. Tim had been too worried to speak, only calling Agent A to tell him that they’d need Leslie to be at the cave when they got there. Damian refused to leave Dick’s side while he was carrying Bruce, as if he was guarding the two.

Dick would’ve teased him for being so sweet, but he’d have to wait until Bruce wasn’t at risk of bleeding out.

He felt a weak hand reach for his shoulder, breaking his tunnel vision train of thought and causing him to glance down. Bruce was alive, which was a relief, but barely awake, trying to grip Dick’s shoulder while his other hand held the wound in his side.

“Batman?” Nightwing looked in front of him occasionally, not wanting to trip. From the corner of his eye, he saw Damian peek over.

“Nightwing.” Batman’s voice sounded strangled, but it didn’t sound like he was too weak yet, but that could be the voice changer at work.

“Still with me?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Stay awake, almost to the Batmobile.”

As they snuck out the back of the building, Dick kept checking on Bruce, making sure he wasn’t drifting off, or causing himself to start bleeding more. Jason jumped and slid over the hood of the Bat-mobile and opened the driver’s side door.

“I’m driving.”

“Red Hood, it’s fine, I can drive-“

“No, Nightwing, you’re in the front with Batman. Red Robin, Robin, get in the back.”

Realizing there was no time to argue, Dick nodded, already heading to the passenger side.

Once he slid in, he shifted Bruce around so he wasn’t laying on his wound and tried to find the best possible position. His arms were sore from carrying the man, and he could feel bruises starting to form on his face from the fight earlier. Dick glanced over to Jason. There was a cut in his favorite brown leather jacket, some blood coating the edges, but other than that he seemed fine.

By checking over his brothers, his anxiety about his father’s worrying state seemed to ease up. At least he couldn’t feel his heart racing anymore, but his hands and legs still shook like crazy.

Tim and Damian squished together in the backseat. Bruce had added the seats while Dick was still leading the Teen Titans, and it was definitely a wise choice considering the amount of times the brothers had to somehow fit in the front because of the lack of seats.

“Fuck dude, he’s still breathing, right?” Jason derailed his train of thought.

Dick glanced over Bruce. He hadn’t been talking much, but even when he wasn’t injured, he didn’t speak a lot. The man was still awake, but it took a small shake from Dick to snap him back into reality.

“Dick?”

“Almost home, stay awake.”

Bruce gave a weak nod. Dick shifted around, both nervous and uncomfortable. He must’ve zoned out sometime during the drive back, because the next thing he knew, they were home, Bruce was gone, and someone was grabbing him.

He flinched, both out of surprise and the sudden overload of senses.

“Come on, Dick.”

It was Tim. He still had his suit on, but his cowl was gone now. He appeared shaken, and the look in his eyes made Dick feel guilty about letting himself space out from shock.

“Oh, sorry. Sorry. Where’s Agent A?”

“With Leslie. They’re taking care of Bruce. They’re concerned about him.”

Dick slid out of the Bat-mobile, adjusting his suit before hugging him. The usual almost black navy-blue of his suit was now stained with blood, turning it into a deep red. Tim wrapped his arms back around him, sinking into the contact.

“How’s Jaybird and Dami?”

“Worried. We all are.”

“Let’s go.”

Dick pulled away, walking beside Tim as they headed to the main area of the cave. Jason was pacing around impatiently, while Damian was standing beside Alfred, carrying gloves and bandages over to Leslie. The table Bruce was laid on was close to the wall, and he already had several machines hooked onto him, monitoring his vitals.

Dick stiffened at the sight of Bruce laying on the table, unmoving before he walked away from Tim and over to Jason. He seemed like he needed to punch something, but Dick could try and offer him a hug instead.

“Hey, littlewing?”

Jason turned towards him. His black hair was swept over his face, hanging just above his eyes, which were darting around nervously, though it was obvious he didn’t want to show that he was anxious. Jason never liked to show too much concern, especially about his adoptive father, but he always seemed to let the small things shine through, like his constant hovering around or the tiny trembles in his voice.

“What?” He sounded irritated, reasonably so.

“Come here.” Dick opened his arms, inviting him over for a hug.

“No.”

“Fine.” Dick walked over before pulling him into a hug himself. Jason tensed up at first but eventually wrapped his arms back around his brother hesitantly.

“He’s going to be okay.”

Jason nodded, staying in the hug for a second longer before moving away, “I know. I know. Just paranoid, ya’know?” He admitted, almost under his breath.

“Yeah. We all are, Jaybird. But He’ll bounce back, good as new.”

“I need to do something. I’m gonna go upstairs.” Jason glanced away, excusing himself before putting a bandage patch on the cut he had on his shoulder and going upstairs back up to the manor.

Tim, Dick and Damian stayed down in the cave, helping Alfred and Leslie whenever they could. It took around an hour and fifteen minutes to stabilize Bruce, and even then, he had still lost a lot of blood, so he would have to rest for the next few days. His stab wound was neatly cleaned up and needed around twelve stitches, leaving his side tender and slightly inflamed.

Dick looked at his Batman armor, surprised not to find a tear in the kevlar of the suit. Instead, he found out that the knife had dug under the edge where the armor meets the fabric. Taking note of that, he put the suit up on the stand, ready to finally get out of his own bloody suit.

He walked upstairs to get some fresh clothes. He could’ve asked Alfred to grab them, or use the spares they kept downstairs, but this was just another reason to check up on Jason.

After a quick shower, he found that the blood had seeped through his suit and stained his abdomen slightly red. Dick threw on some gray sweatpants and a deep blue t-shirt, reveling in how comfortable it was compared to the tacky and stiff suit he had just gotten out of.

When he walked downstairs, Damian was seemingly waiting for him, leaning up against the doorway that led to the living room. He had also changed out of his suit, wearing an emerald green sweater that was one size too big, paired with black shorts and dark gray socks.

“You okay?” Dick moved to stand beside him, gently setting a hand on the kid’s shoulder.

Damian just nodded. His relationship with Bruce was definitely more complicated compared to Dick or Tim’s because, unlike them, it took a long time for Damian to warm up to Bruce, and to work beside him.

“Worried?”

“No. Father will be fine. I know he will.”

Dick crouched down a bit to get to eye-level, putting an arm around him, “You’re right.”

Damian swooped under and away from Dick’s arm, “I am not a child, Grayson.”

“Your birth certificate begs to differ, little brother.”

The kid huffed, punching him in the shoulder playfully, “Don’t call me that.”

“But it’s true, if you have any suggestions or preferences, tell me now, baby wing.”

“That’s even worse!”

“So now you want little brother?”

“It’ll save some of my dignity.”

Dick chuckled, reaching over and pulling Damian over by his arm, swinging an arm around the boy’s chest and ruffling his hair, “Alright, lil bro.”

Damian kicked around, swatting lightly at whatever he could to get out of Dick’s grip. After he let him go, Damian stepped back, fixed his hair and straightened his clothes.

“Do that again and I’ll kill you in your sleep.”

“Aww, I thought we were having a heart to heart.”

A hard _thud_ came from down the hallway, an echo causing both Dick and Damian to glance over.

“5 bucks says that’s Jay.” Dick sprung back to full height, already speed-walking over. Damian nodded, following after him.

Needless to say, Dick was right. The thud had come from the training room, and when they got there, they saw Jason standing in the center of the room, out of breath, and standing next to a ruptured punching bag. The sand from the bag still clouded the air and made a mess on the floor around it. Jason turned around and glanced at them.

“Sorry. Got carried away.”

“It’s alright. Just makin’ sure you’re okay.” Dick approached him slowly, “You two should jump in the shower, I’m sure Alfred would kill us if we smelled like sweat and blood in the morning.”

Damian gave him a look before shrugging, “I’ll have one later.”

Jason looked down at himself and sighed, “Guess it’s my turn now then. I’ll see you guys later. I’ll clean this up after.” He gestured to the mess on the floor as he walked past Dick and out the room.

Just as Dick was about to say he’d clean it up, Tim rushed in, his eyes darting from Dick to Damian and then to the ruptured sandbag before clearing his throat.

“Bruce’s awake, he wants to see you guys.”

Dick tensed up, nodding as he looked at Damian. He could tell the boy was relieved, despite the lack of a sigh or a smile.

They all sped-walked down to the cave. Leslie was gone now, Dick would have to call to thank her later, and Alfred was there to greet them, and also to make sure they’d be quiet and calm around their dad.

Bruce was now laying in a stretcher, rather than the table he was on before. A thin blanket was draped over him, and he had an oxygen tube set right under his nose. He had heard Dick, Tim and Damian approaching apparently because his head slowly turned to face the trio before they finished walking over, a subtle smile on his face.

“Hey, boys. Where’s Jay?” Bruce asked with a hoarse voice.

Dick moved closer first, pulling up a chair to sit next to him, “In the shower, should be down in a few minutes. How’re you feeling?”

“Like I got stabbed. Glad you boys were there.” A hand came and messed up Dick’s hair.

“You worried us.” Damian spoke up as he and Tim moved forward, careful not to crowd him much.

“Sorry about that. Wasn’t thinking.”

Tim crossed his arms and nodded, “While you were out, I was able to collect some leads on the cartel based on what happened tonight.”

“Nice work, Tim.”

“Glad to see you back in the land of the living.”

Jason walked up from behind Tim and Damian, putting a hand on one of their shoulders. He had changed into a white tank top, and some red pajama pants, black socks covering his feet. There was no more grime on his face, and his hair was damp enough, so it wasn’t dripping water, but it was still drooping down over his eyes.

“Did anyone else get hurt?” Bruce glanced over all four of them, checking for any serious injuries.

“Jay got a cut on his shoulder, but other than that, we only have a few bumps and bruises.” Dick looked back to his brother, noticing that the slice on Jay’s arm now had a bit of gauze stuck on rather than a tegaderm bandage.

Bruce seemed relieved by that statement, letting himself relax back into the bed, “Good. That’s good.”

Alfred walked over, glancing at his watch, “I hate to interrupt such a heartfelt moment, but it is very late, and Master Bruce needs his rest, as well as the four of you.”

Jason and Dick groaned simultaneously while Tim nodded, “Alright Alf. Goodnight.” He said, walking up to Bruce and giving him a gentle one-armed hug before leaving. Damian scooted up behind Tim, waiting for him to leave before saying goodnight to his father, getting a hug and slipping out of the room.

“Come on you two.” Bruce beckoned for Jason to come over next.

“I just want to let you know now, if you die, I’ll kill you myself.” Jason huffed as he got his hug.

“That doesn’t make sense, Jay.”

“I know.”

And with that, he left, leaving Dick, Bruce and Alfred in the room.

“I can bring something down for you, a glass of water, a blanket, anything.”

“I’m okay, Dick, really. Thank you.”

Dick scooted up in his chair, “You sure? I’m just saying, it’s not much trouble-“

“Chum, the only thing I could ask of you right now is to go to bed. You need sleep.”

“But what if something happens?”

“Nothing’s going to happen, I’m okay. If anything changes, my monitors will be sure to let you know.” He waved the finger with the oxygen clip monitor around in the air.

“Sorry, sorry. I’m just paranoid.”

“It’s alright Chum, now go get some rest. It’s been a rough night for all of us, I can tell.” He reached over, pulling Dick over by the shoulder before hugging him.

“Goodnight, B.” Dick said once he stood up, turning to walk upstairs.

“Goodnight.”

* * *

In the morning, after breakfast, the four boys rushed downstairs to check on Bruce. He was going through the beginning stages of recovery, which was good, but it was quite obvious that he couldn’t take on the cowl for the next few days, leaving Dick to lead the team of four in the field.

It took five days for Alfred to clear Bruce for the field, and even then, he was constantly checking the state of the wound every time Bruce was getting in or out of the suit. After fourteen days, the scabs had flaked off, revealing a very subtle scar on his side, which would fade over time.

And even though it was healed, it didn’t stop the four boys from repeatedly checking in on Bruce every time he was hurt.


End file.
